Organ donation is a gift of life. It’s also a time-sensitive gift; when an organ becomes available, time is of the essence to ensure it’s able to be transplanted while still viable.

A nationwide nursing shortage, combined with the fact that time is so precious to the organ transplantation process, means that it’s critical that communication is expedited with local organ procurement organizations (OPOs) to make the best use of every gift of life. And with hospitals using electronic health records (EHR), there is an opportunity to improve the efficiency of the organ referral process – the notification process that a potential donor organ meeting predetermined clinical criteria may be available for transplant. In fact, there are pilot studies underway with software that will help overburdened hospital staff save precious minutes and identify more potential deceased organ donors.

UNOS supports mandated automated deceased organ donor referrals, as widespread use could significantly expedite the process of identifying potential organ donors. This will ultimately increase the number of patients who receive lifesaving transplants.

So how does it work?

1Automated electronic deceased donor referrals are used by hospitals to instantly alert OPOs of patients who are candidates for deceased organ donation.

2The technology uses hospital EHR systems to flag patients who are showing signs of imminent death, and then sends an automatic message to the collaborating OPO.

3This referral includes enough information to inform the OPO that they may begin evaluating the patient’s suitability for deceased organ donation. 

While there are successful pilot programs, the referral process is still typically performed manually by hospital staff relying on a nurse to make a phone call. Automating the referral process with software would lift the burden of reporting from busy hospital staff amid the nationwide nursing shortage, reduce the risk of human error and ensure every potential donor is referred. 

Widespread use of automated electronic deceased donor referral could increase donor referrals and therefore organ donors, which would help reduce the number of Americans waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant. 

UNOS calls on Congress to require automated deceased donor referral.